Deception & victory Joshua 9 & 10

Taking the land The Longest Day Joshua 10 “The sun stopped in the middle of the sky and delayed going down about a full day. There has never been a day like it before or since, a day when the Lord listened to a human being. Surely the Lord was fighting for Israel!” Joshua 10: 13-14 (NIVUK)

Seeing is believing?

Developing & growing We all make mistakes but… Mistakes are redeemable – integrity Where do we look for guidance? “‘…did not enquire of the Lord” – Joshua 9:9 “We have given them our oath by the Lord, the God of Israel, and we cannot touch them now” – Joshua 9:19 “Let your roots grow down into him, and let your lives be built on him. Then your faith will grow strong in the truth you were taught, and you will overflow with thankfulness” – Colossians 2:7 (NLT)

Developing & growing We all make mistakes but… What is the fight of faith? Why is it a good fight? How does it link with eternal life? What are the success criteria? How would you know if you are winning? Who or what are we fighting against? How do we recognise the tactics and weapons used against us? Is this a defensive or an offensive campaign? We all make mistakes but… We all face battles but… Fight to persevere in faith Fight to perfect our faith Fight to proclaim our faith Defend | Develop | Declare “Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called” – 1 Timothy 6:12 “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” – 2 Timothy 4:7

Developing & growing We all make mistakes but… “Accuser of the saints” (Revelation 12:10) “Father of lies” (John 8:44) We all make mistakes but… We all face battles but… We all have an enemy but… Primary weapons: pride | unbelief | fear Tactics: accusation | deception “Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. Stand firm against him, and be strong in your faith…” – 1 Peter 5:8-9a (NLT)

Developing & growing We all make mistakes but… “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” – 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 We all make mistakes but… We all face battles but… We all have an enemy but… We all have the victory but… “more than conquerors…” – Romans 8:37 ”Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power” – Ephesians 6:10

Developing & growing We all make mistakes but… “For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ” – 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 We all make mistakes but… We all face battles but… We all have an enemy but… We all have the victory but… What strongholds do I have? Where don’t I fully trust God to be my provision? How can I move forward in faith? Who is alongside me to help me? Demolish – flatten, tear down, bulldoze, destroy, obliterate, erase, dismantle